[salynchnew]

Most states (at least in the midwest) have not kept up with their obligations when it comes to funding the historical land grand universities ("state" university, etc.).

[qzw]

A lot of state universities (not just in the Midwest) have become professional football teams with an educational institution attached. And I say this as a fan of one of those teams.

[stockresearcher]

There might be one or two exceptions, but generally the schools you are referring to are bursting at the seams with students.

Quick web search:

University of Georgia - enrollment up 3%

Ohio State - enrollment up 2.3%, highest in history

University of Alabama - enrollment exceeds 40,000 for first time in history

University of Michigan - couldn’t find enrollment, but it reported a record number of applications